City Lights
by Shimmercloud
Summary: Headcanon for Tadashi and Akira from Yahiro's birthday party a few years back. Ten year old Akira meets a unique new friend.


**Okay this scene actually DOESN'T FIT IN THE STORYLINE WHATSOEVER so I honestly don't know why I'm writing this. **

**Honestly everytime I watch this scene I get angrier and angrier. It's like the producers of the anime just stuck it in there because they wanted to make their romance deeper. IT DOESN'T NEED TO BE DEEPER. It's a cute addition, but it honestly just doesn't work. It totally contradicts the rest of the story. Akira did _not_ meet Tadashi way back then and fall in love with him. Loving him was something that happened overtime, with Tadashi giving her unexpected advice, sticking up for her, helping her, and she slowly started to like him which made her feel conflicted and depressed and is basically why the whole thing with their disputes in the anime happens. NONE OF THAT CITY LIGHTS DANCING AT NIGHT CRAP.**

**BUT REGARDLESS I LOVE THIS SCENE LIKE CRAZY AND TADASHI IS ADORABLE so I wrote this headcanon.**

**It was actually so hard to write, cause I couldn't look back at the anime for accuracy because IT KILLS ME EVERY TIME AHHH THOSE FEELS. But I forced myself to look at it and then died.**

**Enjoy.**

* * *

"Hmm? Birthday party?"

I sat in the garden, sipping a cup of green tea. It was a beautiful day, bright and sunny, with just a hint of wind that made the flowers sway gently. Kei sat underneath a tree a few feet away, looking as nonchalant as he usually did.

"Yeah," he answered. "It's next week. Don't tell me you're not going?"

"No, I'm going," I said hesitantly. "I just…"

"Just what? You don't want to go, do you?" I shrugged, lifting my cup to my mouth. I really liked parties, but Yahiro's…I had been going to them every year since as long as I could remember. And every year it was the same. Yahiro would be stupid and bossy and force us to play stupid games that no one wanted to play. And yet, if I didn't go, I knew I probably wouldn't live to see another day.

"I don't want to go either," I heard Kei say.

"Why not?" I asked. If there was anyone who could stand up to Yahiro, it was Kei. Too bad all he did was sit there and frown all day.

"I hate parties," he replied flatly. Point proven.

"Well…you're still going, right? What are you going to get him?"

"I don't know." He yawned, running his hand through his hair. "I ran out of ideas a few years ago." I laughed and took another sip of tea. "Why don't you make something yummy for him? I think he'd like that." I turned to face him, surprised.

"Why would you say that?"

"Well, who doesn't like the stuff you make?" Shaking my head, I stood up, brushing the grass from my dress.

"You're right," I declared. "I'll make lots of biscuits and pastries and cakes…" I walked away, barely feeling Kei's eyes boring into my head.

A mouthwatering scent drifted through the halls of the villa. Kei sat at the table, reading a book. I rushed through the kitchen, baking and baking and baking. _It has to be perfect!_

"Kei, try this!" I thrust a small cake in front of him He looked at it, and then at me, a clear "No" look in his eyes. Frowning, I grabbed the cake and ran out of the kitchen. A maid was standing in the hall, sweeping the floor. I handed the cake to her as she looked at me with a surprised expression. "Eat this!" I wasn't exactly sure what she felt because she was so flustered, but she looked a lot happier after she ate it so I just assumed it would make Yahiro happy too.

"Ta-da!" I showed Kei a plate of perfectly arranged sweets.

"They're nice," he said simply.

"Eat one!"

"No," he sighed, turning away. "Save them for Yahiro. His party is tonight. Be ready." I frowned. Kei never wanted to eat anything I made. Oh well. I skipped away, eager to wrap the plate of sweets for Yahiro. My stomach flopped as I thought about the party. _I better not screw this up._

The limo pulled up in front of Yahiro's gigantic villa. I pressed my face against the window, reluctant to leave to comfort of the car. Taking a breath, I pushed the door opened and walked slowly toward the mansion. It wasn't long before I felt a poke on my shoulder. I turned around to see Kei standing behind me, looking slightly infuriated.

"Once you get to the door," he said slowly, his voice laced with annoyance. "The party will be over and Yahiro will have already killed us." Flustered, I picked up the pace, with Kei at my heels. I lifted my hand to ring the doorbell, but the door swung open before I had the chance. Yahiro stood in the doorway, smiling. "Welcome." We stepped into the foyer. It was decorated with glittery streamers and balloons, and there were tables lined with all kinds of different treats. In the corner was a pile of gifts, probably from family friends. I knew the pile would grow a lot bigger as the night progressed. As Yahiro's closest friends, Kei and I were obligated to arrive first, which meant sitting around awkwardly until the other children arrived. I sighed and put my gift in the corner, with Kei following closer behind. "Hey, what did you get him?" I asked.

"Stuff," he replied. I rolled my eyes, turning away from him.

"Akira." I looked up to see Yahiro smiling down at me. I took a step back.

"Um…happy birthday, Yahiro," I stammered. "You're ten now."

"Yeah." Yahiro looked a bit distant, but before he could say anything, the doorbell rang and he ran off. I breathed a sigh of relief and glanced at Kei, who was staring at Yahiro, looking disgruntled.

Soon, all the kids had arrived and the party was underway. I successfully avoided Yahiro, hoping that he wouldn't notice. Luckily, he was busy talking to (and probably bullying) some other people. Standing by the food table, I pretended to examine the plates.

"These look really good!" I turned to see a boy standing beside me, messily cramming a bun into his mouth. I twitched, glaring at him. How rude! He noticed my angry stare and swallowed. "Sorry," he laughed. "But this is all so tasty; I just can't stand to eat it slowly." I opened my mouth to make a scolding remark, and then closed it when I saw Kei standing at the other side of the room. His head was down and his hair hung over his eyes. What a killjoy.

"Well, at least you're enjoying it," I said to the boy. "I bake all the time, but my friend never wants to eat any." He paused and looked at me.

"Why not?" he asked. "Are they not good?"

"I don't think so," I answered thoughtfully. I reached into my purse and pulled out an extra cake. I always remembered to bring extra snacks to Yahiro's parties in case I ended up hiding in the bathroom. "Here, try this." He took it from me gratefully and stuffed it into his mouth. My annoyance was overcome with curiosity as he ate, a surprised look on his face. Then, he broke into a grin.

"Wow!" he exclaimed. "This is delicious! The best cake I've ever had in my life!" My face turned red as he raved, and a feeling of happiness washed over me.

"I-I'm Akira," I said. "Toudou Akira." The boy smiled and wiped his mouth with a napkin.

"I'm Karino Tadashi," he replied cheerfully. "It's nice to meet you!" We began to talk about food and the sorts, and I soon forgot about Yahiro.

"Everyone!" Yahiro's voice rose above the chattering party guests, and everyone fell silent. "We're going to play tag." My heart sunk. We played Yahiro's weird twisted game of tag every year, and every year I hated it. "And the "it" person is…" I stared at him, praying that he wouldn't pick me. "Kei!" I rubbed my ears. Had I heard him correctly? I glanced at Kei, who was standing in his corner. His hand was on his forehead and he looked like he was about the kill someone.

"He's going to win for sure," I muttered. "Why even try?"

"Go!" Yahiro shouted. In an instant, Kei was gone. I ran in the other direction, hoping to get away from the crowd of rampaging kids who thought for even a minute that they could catch Kei.

I ran through the dark corridors, so that if Yahiro saw me, he'd think I was at least trying. I glanced behind my shoulder to see if he was there. "Oof!" Suddenly, I crashed into someone and fell backwards, landing on the carpet. Looking up, I saw Tadashi standing over me, holding out his hand. "Oh…it's you."

"Hi again!" He shot me an embarrassed grin. "Sorry about that."

"No, it's my fault," I dipped my head and stood up. "I wasn't watching where I was going."

"Geez, are you always this polite?" He laughed, running a hand through his mop of brown hair. "Lighten up a bit. There's no one around." I stared at the ground. _Who is this guy? How is he so confident about himself, especially in a place like this?_

"This game isn't very fun, is it?" he mused. "That Kei guy is faster than anyone I've ever seen. He's probably already won." I nodded, frowning. Why did Yahiro have to pick him? "Hey." Tadashi's voice broke me out of my thoughts. "Let's get out of here."

"Out of here?" I widened my eyes, shocked. "And go where?"

"I don't know anywhere." His eyes glowed adventurously. "We'll know when we get there."

"But…isn't that dangerous?" I gasped.

"Dangerous?" he laughed. "I get the feeling that this party is more dangerous than anything outside." He looked at me, smiling. "Let's just go. We can worry about danger when we get to it." I stared at him in disbelief. _Is this guy for real?_ There was no way I could leave Yahiro's party. He would kill me for sure! I looked up at Tadashi. Kei and Yahiro were both so uptight. Yahiro was bossy and controlling and Kei never did anything. I had never met anyone like Tadashi before. He seemed to like jumping headfirst into things without thinking ahead. "Okay," he said, grabbing my hand. "No more thinking. Let's go."

"Hey, wait a second!" But he was already running down the hall to the door, dragging me behind him. I looked up at him in awe. Tadashi was confident and courageous and well…fun. I wanted in on that fun, the fun that Yahiro never let me have. Taking a deep breath, I pushed my fear of Yahiro away and followed him out the door.

"A bike?" I stared as Tadashi mounted an old looking bike. I couldn't remember the last time I rode a bike.

"Mhmm. Get on!" Reluctantly, I climbed on behind him. "Alright, let's go!" I drew my breath as we took off, speeding out into the streets. Adrenaline coursed through my veins and my hair blew out behind me. _This is amazing… _The city was beautiful at night, lit up with signs and lights. Tadashi stopped the bike and got off. We walked together through the beautiful streets. It was the first time I had ever been out without my parents or Yahiro. I looked at Tadashi, who was smiling confidently as if he had run away a thousand times before.

"Hey, we're here!" Tadashi ran over to a railing perched at the edge of a cliff, with me following close behind. Lights shone in my eyes as I reached the edge. "Wow…" The view was breathtaking. The cliff overlooked the cityscape, which was lit with all different colours. I swept my gaze over the view, an awestruck look on my face. It was all so beautiful. I looked over at Tadashi, who was staring out into the sky. _Can I be confident like him?_ With a burst of energy, I reached out and grabbed his hand. He looked at me, surprised. "For taking me out here," I announced. "I'll teach you how to dance."

"H-Hey, wait…" I pulled him out onto the sidewalk and shut my eyes. _Out here, there are no worries. _In front of the beautiful lights, we danced.

I held onto him as we rode back to the villa. The wind rushed through my hair and I shut my eyes, letting the sounds of the city overtake me. I felt Tadashi twitch and opened my eyes. "Hmm? What did you say?" He shook his head, flustered.

"Nothing," he muttered.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!"

"You said something, didn't you?"

"Ahh, it was nothing!"

My arms wrapped tightly around him as we sped through the streets, the lights dancing around us. It was beautiful. Every last bit of it. The lights, the freedom, being with Tadashi. _I'll never get to do this again…_ But as the night ended, I watched him, with his confident smile and upbeat attitude, and I didn't have any doubts that as long as I knew him, the adventure would never end.


End file.
